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Deals, Decoys, and Dirty Tricks for your Characters

Your hero’s trapped

Your hero's trapped by his enemies, no way to run or fight—unless he can take what those goons really want and use it against them. Your villain nee

motive

The Plot-Device Machine – Motive

A story is its people. We

A story is its people. We all know that, and that’s why Motive is different from the other Plot Device points. We’ve seen how

strength

The Plot-Device Machine – Strength

Welcome to the whole stor

Welcome to the whole story… or at least a chance to step back from looking at single aspects of writing, like the last two Plot-Device posts did. No

knowledge

The Plot-Device Machine – Knowledge

“You can run but you ca

“You can run but you can’t hide.” It’s simple truth, that getting distance from a problem may be no match for how “Knowledge is power.” An


The Plot-Device Machine – Movement

I’m about to share with

I’m about to share with you my all-purpose tool for the all-purpose question that my characters (and I'd bet yours) are constantly asking. That ques

stakes

Worth Fighting For – choosing stakes for characters

When I’m first putt

When I'm first putting my sense of a story together, there's one question that can turn the different pieces into a whole, sometimes faster than any o


How All Writing is Suspense

Why is my writing all abo

Why is my writing all about suspense? I think a better question is, is there any story that isn’t really about building uncertaint

Five senses

Writing for Five Senses – Combining Them All

Can you write a descripti

Can you write a description with just sight and hearing? No, but those two can organize how all five senses fit together.

five senses

Writing for Five Senses – Description on the Run

It’s one of the most co

It’s one of the most common writing tips: “Write the scene using all five senses.” But whenever I hear one writer give another that advice, I fe

flight

Flying – Is The Sky The Only Limit?

Power Plays (can we be ca

Power Plays (can we be canny with the uncanny?)

ideas

Zero to Heroes

On February 16, I’l

On February 16, I'll be at Orccon in Los Angeles giving another of my talks on writing. Here's what I'll be leading people through:


Invisibility – the best guide you’ll never see

Power Plays (can we be ca

Power Plays (can we be canny with the uncanny?)